17 Out of Time
by redcloudedleopard
Summary: Doom's board is set; the pieces are moving. He fabricates a deadly plan involving time travel, taking Ozai & Azula hostage in another timeline, & threatens to wipe the Four from existence. Johnny x Azula romance in abundance here!
1. Prologue

_Johnny was positive he had seen her slipping that 'Hot Rod' mag copy behind her back, just as he turned the corner into the kitchen area today. It was hard to peek behind her apron from the front. Yet she wouldn't talk to him. Throughout the whole of lunchtime she wouldn't talk to him & only him. She sounded 100% fine chatting with Ben, Dr. O, Reed & Sue. & all this resulting from his act in replacing Ben with She-Hulk for the previous mission?_

_On Azula's side of the matter_, he wouldn't gain her trust anytime soon_, she was thinking. There was the danger he'd be treating her like mere property of they got serious; that was the bottom line. It was such a major letdown seeing how he treated Ben (wanting to replace him by holding a "superhero recruitment audition"). _

_If he felt any love at all for the pal he nicknamed "Brickhead", he wouldn't have done something so outrageous. Sue would agree with her on this. She was worried now about how he'd be treating a girl he'd have as his girlfriend (not necessarily meaning that girl would be _HER_). Boy, was she glad he'd be away that afternoon on that Time Machine 'assignment' Reed was working on. She'd have peace & quiet in this timeframe while he was rampaging with the dinosaurs or something. _

Reed's #1 rule for time travelling: No tampering with the temporal stasis devices fixed around your arm. They were what allowed you to exist in another timeframe & were sensitive instruments.

The Time Machine smoothly warped through a psychedelic spinning tunnel. Generally the ride wasn't at all bumpy, apart from the presence of a mild undercurrent. All of a sudden, the contraption jerked violently. "Time turbulence…," mumbled Ben.

No one in the whole party had seen the little Doombot, sent by its master to sneak after them on this mission. The only real test was getting it into the Baxter Building unnoticed, & Doom was delighted that he succeeded. Now clinging to the Time Machine, it was ingeniously programmed to release its grip at a certain point in the portal – to vanish into the timeline of the day of space station launch involving Doom & the Four. That was but the tip of the iceberg of Victor's deadliest schemes yet.


	2. A City Unsaved

Returning from the place Reed desired to perform his research (yes, the one with dinosaurs) the shadowy city of New York wasn't ready to welcome them. Instead, its very appearance _begged_ them to leave. Also, the clouds in the sky refused to part & let any light shine through to warm the whole place. Eerily, the city wasn't buzzing with its healthy activity, but every nook & cranny looked shrouded in something sinister.

"That's…not quite right," said Reed, as they descended. The vehicle was about to fly past Lady Liberty, when they seemed to foresee little pleasure in gazing at it – the statue's face had been carved into a menacing form. Rendered speechless, the Statue of Doom himself towered above them with its hollow eyes.

"The Statue of Liberty got real ugly," came Johnny's comment. His good humour failed to perk the rest up, of course. Reed then thought it inevitable to survey the city streets; speeding up the Fantasticar to get them there fast.

The city warned them another time to take care. Her caution to them was punctually given.

Sue eyed each individual building; none of them were teeming with any life. Ben too was getting depressed, though he could conceal the feeling especially well in the creases of his rocky face. A ruddy light just outside his window caused his jaw to drop. "Yo, Stretch! Check out the Baxter Building!" his voice shook a little, "That can't be good."

Beyond all comparison was the evil reflected in the new logo glowing atop the Four's home. The edgy shape of Victor's mask. In the back of his mind, Reed secretly pictured Doom as a malicious child **abandoned to do whatever shameful things his heart desired. **This was what would result from that.

Sue asked a rhetorical "What happened?"

"_Unauthorized vehicle. You are in violation of the city's security laws."_ An aircraft with illuminated in green hovered next to them now. _"Land & surrender. You have ten seconds to comply."_

"No, you comply!" snapped Johnny, pointing a finger.

Reed looked to his computer interface that indicated that aircraft wielded missiles. He barked, "Evasive maneuvers!" The vehicle lowered itself, then sped off from under a bridge. Soon, two more of the same aircraft joined the first, to chase the team down.

"Sorry, Stretch! Your time doohickey's slowing us down!" Ben said.

"Ben, NO!" yelled Reed but to no avail. His best friend tugged at a special lever in his cockpit to release the Time Machine from the Fantasticar. Without getting sidetracked, they let the contraption sink into the water below.

A green projectile rushed toward them from behind, only to hit the bridge instead of its desired target. Ben utilized his piloting skills, "Hang on!" He swerved to the left into a narrower city street. The third & last enemy ship crashed when failing to turn smoothly & keep up. As for the other two, they begin launching their high velocity homing missiles. The team found these to be quite the reverse of reckless, for the missiles made the next sharp corner turn most efficiently. "Suzy, how 'bout a hand here?" asked Ben.

Without replying, Sue shut her eyes – sending her own invisible missiles on their way out of the Fantasticar just with her mind. She didn't even have to look behind to make sure they hit the opposing projectiles head on. Quite frankly, the limits of her powers were overlooked at times.

"Johnny, get ready. Engage Nova Boost!" instructed Reed.

"Oh, yeah! Flame on!" the Human Torch lit up. The vehicle gained a steep increase in speed, propelling them far forward. Successfully, Doom's aircraft lost sight of it. When they halted, Reed decided they station their mode of transport & make it invisible.

Ben, hiding behind a blind corner, queried, "Since when did Doom's helicopters patrol the city?"

_Technically, Ozai & Azula were in charge of the city's safety right now. But if nothing threatened their leisurely afternoon, they could lounge around in the penthouse & savour the panorama through the glass windows._

"_Couldn't you just tell me what's happening between you & him?" questioned Ozai in his anxiety on the subject._

"_Dad…"_

"_Please? I can help."_

_She laughed at last, "He isn't boyfriend material! What he did with Ben was totally not what I expected!"_

"_You know what? I knew that already," he laughed in turn, "My question _is why is it bothering you so much?_" He sipped some lovely 'Dragon Well' tea. "&, oh, what's that you're reading? It's got loud colours. I like it."_

"_You caught me. Please don't tell anyone," she began. He nodded a casual nod._

"_It sounds funny, but I dream of tasting the wind with his cars. I wanted to ask him for a spin, but since I can't trust him, I somehow have to steal one of them, or something," she had a childish simper on her face._

"Or a_sk him out!" he raised a hand._

"_Not until I can choke an apology out of him. No, wait! Rephrase: not until I'm sure he's not just wanting to impress another girl out there."_

"_Suggestion: don't act satisfied, even if you really are. That'll put him to the perfect test, given his level of impatience." _

"_Hmmmm…that's…"_

"_If he bears it well, I'll help you with the next step," he winked, before opening the papers to give them a relaxing read._

"_Deal. Thanks, Dad." She flipped to the next page of the 'Hot Rod'._

_The subject was pursued no longer. Neither Johnny nor her knew the turn of events they were already being led on._


	3. A Timeline Distorted

It wasn't in their power to clobber the guards coming out the helicopter that had just landed. Therefore, they walked along a safe alleyway to think up the plan. Neither of them could believe the darkness New York was wrapped in. Streets were dead silent, save for chilling winds. Reed wagered Doom had harboured some strange, unappeasable resentment against humankind itself.

Reed started, "We need to split up. Susan & I will try to locate Doom & find out what changed in the past. Ben, you & Johnny – wait, _where is Johnny_?"

"Sorry, I stopped at Doombucks! This place is crazy…Mmmm, _Doomaccino_," said Johnny, landing from someplace else. Sue put a hand on her forehead in embarrassment.

"Ben & Johnny will go after the Fantasticar's Time Module, which I recall Ben dumped in the river," Reed went on, narrowing eyes at his best buddy.

"It was slowing us down!" repeated Ben from earlier.

Reed brushed it off & reminded them, "Remember, we're in an alternate timeline now. Make sure your temporal stasis devices stay on; they're the only things anchoring us to this reality." With that, he & Sue ran off into the thin city mist.

Their first stop was obvious enough: the Latverian Embassy. Invisibility carried them that far into the city without any issues.

"Well, you have to admit. Finding Doom was pretty easy. Any ideas?" asked Sue.

Reed thought about it & answered, "As far as I can tell…we don't exist in this timeline…I suggest we use the element of surprise."

They ventured on into the premises quickly, ascending steps & passing all surveillance cameras & other devices with surprising ease. It wasn't long before they reached the climax of it all – at present, they stepped into the main hall to confront their arch foe.

However, the figure in green was seated at his uniquely shaped table, as if awaiting the arrival of his guests. He spoke almost straight away, "I've been expecting you." He was pointedly mocking them with his tone, & removed his mask to reveal the unscarred countenance behind it.

"So much for the element of surprise," sighed Sue.

Reed was bold to step forth & question, "What have you done, Victor? How did you _alter history_?"

Coolly, Doom responded, "Ah, Richards. Always one step behind. It's not what I did; it's what I didn't do."

The main doors flew open, showing Ben & Johnny who'd been held captive. A large group of guards had eyes on them from behind. "Sorry Suzy. We hit a little snag," said Ben. The doors closed, sealing the perimeter & trapping the team.

"You were all far less…colourful when I knew you. But as you can see, I've been forewarned of these powers of yours."

Reed shuddered, though not yet frightened out of his senses, "Forewarned? How could you --"

"I'm prepared to offer your team a deal, Richards. You may live, using your powers at _my_ command, provided you kneel before me."

"So, in this timeline, your face is fine but your brain is damaged," Johnny teased him jestingly, with a face to match.

"Speaking of 'damaged'…," Doom unexpectedly smiled back, "If you do not abide by my words, my two best servants will deal with you severely." The words were sweet sounding but with an underlying stone cold edge. He made a small motion with one hand without looking to the side – summoning those servants he mentioned.

"OZAI?" gasped Sue. Her mouth gaped at the sight of the leopard robot appearing from a hidden room (to the left of Doom's grand table). The only difference in Ozai was the blackish sheen of his robotic armour, & the strong green glow his helmet's eyes emitted. His daughter followed behind, except her wrists were bound in chains held tightly by two heavily protected, tall stout men. The men wore the same uniform as the rest of the guards.

The villain's message was clear-cut. It was strenuous advice to the Four to comply, or else they'd be pit against their two closest acquaintances in this timeframe.

Johnny moved his head a bit so as to command a full-view of Azula, & was stunned. "Zed," he muttered under his breath. She saw his expression & gazed back at him.

Faded scars covered her face & hands, but that glowing expression she always had when he saw her didn't fail to shine through. Only…the glowing was that of a fierce desire to keep oneself alive under a cold-blooded master. Doom had induced them both to serve him all these years; he knew _ahead of time_ that Ozai was capable of constructing a lethal cybernetic leopard. He knew Azula had unimaginable firebending powers resulting from unstable molecules. Again, he had been _forewarned_ of these circumstances.

"Let them go," said Sue with a tone of iron.

"We will never kneel before you, Victor!" announced an angry Reed.

"Azula, therein lies your chance to prove yourself," began Doom.

"_Who said I ever wanted to listen to you?" _she snapped_. _In comparison to Ozai, she was being the difficult one. Her fists lit up in blue while the men minding her tapped a switch at the end of the chains. That sent small surges of electricity into her body in response to her action. As she endured the pain, Johnny's countenance lost its colour. Ben could actually hear him breathing deeply to contain the rage.

Victor just grunted, "You misunderstand, Richards." Suddenly, a spider-like Doombot crawled from above. "The offer wasn't for you," concluded Doom. The Doombot fired: at Reed's temporal stasis device. "REED!" panicked Sue.

"You should take better care of your inventions," mocked Victor, as Reed's whole figure seemed to fade.

"Susan! You have to listen – you have to go back – go back to the beginning!" stammered Reed as he ran to Sue. After he finished, his body disintegrated fully till nothing was left.

"& as for you three, my offer stands," smiled Doom.

"NO!" Sue screamed. Her emotions triggered her involuntary action of letting out a force pulse. It damaged the Doombot, while simultaneously breaking the sturdy ropes binding Ben & Johnny. She then wrecked the blasters that were wired into the ceiling with a spinning projectile.

"What have you done to him?" she demanded. Her angered eyes were upon him. **His**** unjust nature proved to be an abomination to the just.**

Johnny was serious to join his sister, "& to them?" He pointed to Ozai & Azula.

Sue launched a pulse at blinding speed, but it was deflected & cancelled out by a swipe of Victor's clawed hand. "Foolish girl. With one simple strike, I'll wipe you from existence as well!" he said. He fired a beam of energy from his palm at her, but she blocked it well with a force field.

A huge fist knocked him to the floor. "Well, wipe THIS!" Ben said with his rock hard arm raised in preparation for his following move. Just then, he turned to Johnny & told him, "I'm glad you ain't thinkin' this is funny. Now let's clobber them!"

Two weighty paws pinned him down, & Leopard X gnashed his teeth in fury.

"Dr. O! Whataya doing? It's me!" yelped Ben. No answer.

Johnny rushed to Azula's aid, as the electric zapping was overwhelming her as she struggled harder to break free. "Hold on, Zed! I'm coming!" he exclaimed. He didn't feel this brave in ages; despite the very considerable size of the two men behind her, he charged. First he performed a quick 'master lock' around one opponent, then jammed a fiery fist into a point on his neck: which slowed the man down. A spinning kick to his solar plexus got him tumbling down. Next, Johnny burned Azula's handcuffs with all his might to melt them down.

Azula could manage the second man on her own in mere seconds. After yanking off his protective helmet with blue-hot ignited hands, she dealt him a blow behind the head, where two major nerve points were situated. She struck them forcibly at once, then kicked the base of his spine with a shout. Her adversary hit the ground, & while he was picking himself up, she wrapped a long piece of metal she had melted around his hands.

"Zed, you okay?" asked Johnny, definitely & _genuinely_ concerned. He helped her up slowly & gently.

"Yeah. Why were you looking at me like that?" she too expressed a kind of concern.

"Huh? You mean I…? Don't I look…FAMILIAR to you?" he sounded so baffled.

"I don't know who you are." She was unhappy in her words. No doubt, she wasn't bluffing.

_After all, this was an alternate timeline._


	4. Hanging by the Thread

_* This is possibly the most serious chapter I've ever written so far…I pray it ain't too dramatic & rushed. *_

"Sis, we gotta get outta here!" shouted Johnny. Grabbing Azula by her green robes, he proceeded to make a hasty departure. At the doors, which were now wide open, stood many a guard holding up pistols. He already had the solution in mind. Azula was under his sole care for the moment; shielding her, he flamed on so vividly that he melted any bullets fired at them. It was just another amazing facet of the effects of cosmic rays on his body.

In secret, Azula was already feeling ardent admiration for that. She unleashed some fire streams to knock aside the guards successfully. But when she turned around, she could see Ozai violently trashing Ben. "Dad, what are you thinking?" she sharply asked.

He didn't reply in words, yet again. He could be heard growling from deep in the throat, & then fired at her from his leopard's jaw. "Blue Blaze, he's lost his head – GET DOWN!" warned Ben. He was rammed against the nearest wall just after Ozai blasted Sue's force field. She had hurtled to the hard floor with a thud.

The deadly beam would've wounded Azula terribly if not for her flame shield. Even so, both her long sleeves were scorched to bits now, but she was relieved she had defended Johnny from the attack.

"Dad! Please!" she then shouted at Leopard X.

After a moment's pause, Ozai moaned, "Azula, I don't know what made me do that…." He was breathless in some kind of agitation, & clenched his temples as if to remove the helmet. As he spun round to see his master, he noticed Doom balling up his fists which contained some concentrated energy. Abruptly, the leopard suit had similar energy sparks flying out of it.

"Doom's controlling you, Dr. O! You have to fight it," said Ben. He picked himself up, although drained of some strength. Ozai gritted his teeth, & let out a far bigger beam in the direction of Victor. Given the anger he was letting out, the blast was mighty to send Doom crashing to the floor in an instant. However, his animalistic armour felt heavier now. Thus he knelt down in exhaustion as his energy was greatly depleted.

"We can't stick around here forever!" complained Johnny at the doorway. Should they be unfortunate, the guards would be back any minute.

"Wait! I'll _make_ him bring Reed back," stressed Sue, running toward Victor.

Ben had helped Ozai find his footing, & obstructed her path, "Suzy, Reed's gone! We gotta go!"

"Doom…," Sue's eyes narrowed. But Ben got hold of her & carried her to the doorway. She resisted his grip but he didn't let go as he headed for a wall to smash through.

"You defied me, servant," came Doom's icy voice while he eyed Ozai. His own armour & robes may have been burnt, but he mustered all he had for another move. A concealed button on his gauntlet was pressed - _to activate the built-in shockers of Leopard X's suit. _A second elapsed before Ozai cried out with energy. Despite Ben's support, he fell to his knees another time whilst his own armour was causing him pain.

Ben was running ahead too fast, & stopped short in a terrible dilemma. Doom was walking toward his electrocuted servant, a dark smile written on his mug, & raised a hand to prepare to blast him once more time. He was governed by the worst type of pride; the pride that inflicted misery on just about anybody. A millisecond before he fired was the time Azula made an attempt to push his arm away.

She managed to spare her father from injury, but couldn't spare herself the hurt. Doom's attack hit her smack in the middle of the torso. Making matters worse, Ozai was zapped unconscious at the point in time, the suit still emitting dangerous sparks. Doom stumbled over weakly, having to get back his strength slowly.

The room whirled in random directions, & Azula heard a thud the moment she collapsed onto the hard marble. She was feeling her chest area, & when she lifted her palm to check, it had been smeared crimson. Time itself was but a blur.

"Zed, I'm right here," someone told her after a long silence. His voice was seemingly broken & very anxious.

"You got to go," she clenched her jaw, following a period of what seemed like forever.

"I'm not," the same voice uttered. The words sounded solid indeed.

Johnny had raging currents in his mind; taking the edge of her long robe, he pressed the bleeding area of her body to maintain the pressure. He called out to his teammates to get someone, _anyone_…who could help. She was struggling to compose herself in spite of being seared from inside. There was a special saying that went something like "**death will be swallowed up in victory**". The quote swam in her sea of thoughts, sometimes above the surface, but at times below the forceful waves. Its truth was being tested.

In the back of Johnny's head lay a memory – Franklin Storm maintaining the blood pressure while his wife, Mary, bled to death. His dad had explained to him about this in place of a bedtime story, the night Mary passed away. She had bled from the same part of the chest as Azula was this instant. Thus, Johnny finally yielded to the tolerably powerful feeling he expressed toward her.

A sad realization dawned on him, though. No one could help in time.

"Flame Brain, we're leaving!" barked Ben. He too felt torn by the sight before him. But the best way to remedy this mess was by time travel.

Ben smashed the brickwork & jumped from the high floor. "Suzy, get it together!" he snapped. Sue formed a platform he could land on, & they dashed through the air to safety. Johnny reunited with them soon after, silent as the grave: a number of happenings were replaying themselves in his head.


	5. Epilogue

_* I'm not gonna explain how Sue, Johnny & Ben went back to the day of their flight to the space station. That has already happened here & I've skipped it. To know it better, watch the original episode. Thanks. *_

_A strange irksome feeling came over them, causing their heads to feel heavy. She dropped the book she was reading & fainted right away. He sunk low onto his knees, & the room went black not long after. It was a law of time travel that was hard to comprehend: drastic changes in the future could affect the past, & not just vice versa. _

_The clock got ticking; the urgency of the situation was not unfelt by Sue, Johnny & Ben._

"Wake up! Ozai, wake up!" Sue was heard calling. "Blue Blaze! Rise & shine!" said Ben.

The two rose up from where they had collapsed.

"Are you okay?" asked Reed in forced calmness. At least his teammates brought him back after an arduous long day of time travel.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Only I had no idea I could faint just like that," muttered Azula.

"I think it's because of what happened to you both…when we met you in the timeline we visited," explained Sue, coming across as very troubled.

"Ughhhh," groaned Ozai. As he fingered the few furrows of his forehead, he experienced a sharp pain in one spot. He forgot about that instantaneously for he just realized what Sue uttered. "Really? What happened?" he said, sounding far more awake.

"That should come later," said Reed, "you'd better get some treatment." He was eyeing some blood flowing from the side of Ozai's forehead.

"Meaning…?" enquired Ozai. "The ER. Now," his daughter appeared to 'order' him, smiling cheekily. "I'd agree. You're bleeding, & it isn't pretty. No offense," Sue filled in. She walked over to Ozai's side & pointed to his right temple.

"Okay, alright," he laughed lightly.

"Zed…," Johnny came to Azula suddenly. To her surprise, he seemed to be reaching out his hand – 'dangerously' near her face. "I can give you…_him…_a ride to the place." In his shaky voice was a weird additional undertone, much like a tone expressing remorse. That proved to be excellent news – he was probably closer to apologizing for his disappointing behaviour that got her on her nerves.

"Thanks. But I'll pass," she quickly answered. "We'll walk," she said to her dad, taking him in the direction of the door. Their footsteps faded away soon after.


End file.
